§ Mr. FrenchTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he has received Coopers and Lybrand's second report on the United Kingdom beef industry; and if he will make a statement. [33237]
§ Mr. Douglas HoggI am placing in the Library copies of Coopers and Lybrand's second report on the United Kingdom beef industry. The report examines the problem of unsaleable stocks in the beef chain against the374W background of my statement on 16 April, Official Report column 515, when I said that the Government did not consider that financial assistance equivalent to that being made available to the slaughtering and cutting sectors should be paid to other sectors.
Coopers and Lybrand notes that many parts of the UK beef industry are entering a period in which realignment and downsizing will take place, but state that they could not suggest any public interest argument to justify Government financial intervention at this stage.
As foreshadowed in my statement of 16 April, the Government will introduce a scheme to support the disposal and, where necessary, the storage of unsaleable beef and beef products held in the supply chain outside the slaughtering sector. This aims to help rebuild market confidence and ensure that appropriate disposal methods are used in the interests of the environment and public health. My Department will shortly issue a consultation document asking for expressions of interest in the scheme. It will be entirely voluntary and no payments will be made to companies for ownership of the stocks.